When it comes to consuming most foods, a golden rule to follow is that if you can consume it whole and unprocessed then do so as often as possible. For example, buying whole bean coffee (and roasting it yourself if possible) and grinding it before each use is better than buying a mega container of preground, and unforgiving, Folgers or Maxwell House and, moreover, buying a whole chicken and roasting it yourself will yield a better food experience than buying pre-processed (and costly) chicken parts.
One of my favorite "buying it whole" food endeavors is whole fish. Buying a fresh whole fish is often more economical and, at times, fresher than it's filleted counterpart. I recently purchased a good looking whole Branzino (or European seabass) from our local fish market and had our fish guy (I hate the phrase, "fish monger") de scale and gut the fish. The whole Branzino was impeccably fresh and smelled of the sea (the good smell). I roasted the whole fish in a 375 F degrees for about 12-15 minutes. The fish was coated in fresh ground black pepper, Kosher salt, and extra virgin olive oil.
I prepared a bunch of fresh sautéed spinach with large slices of garlic, along with red pepper flakes, Kosher salt, and freshly ground black pepper. I also made a small portion of couscous with feta, red onion, parsley, lemon juice, olive oil, dried oregano, and Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Italian
